Stand By Me
by ShadowGirl996
Summary: Astrid had never been as scared as she was when she found Hiccup in the boys' locker room. But now that he's awake, he needs someone to stand by him, no matter how dark the road ahead may be. (Sequel to Nothing) (Modern AU)


**Title: **Stand By Me

**Author: **ShadowGirl996

**Rating: **T

**Summary:** Astrid has never been as scared as she was when she found Hiccup in the boys' locker room. But now that he's awake, he needs someone to stand by him, no matter how dark the road ahead may be.

**Disclaimer: **I own absolutely nothing except my crazy ideas and stories.

**Note: **This is the sequel to Nothing, so if you haven't read that yet, you might want to think about reading that first. Oh, and this story is only rated T because of very, very minor use of profanity (2-3 words at most- correct me if I'm wrong).

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><p>The first sound I heard when I woke up was the obnoxious, ever annoying buzz of machines.<p>

_Beep, beep, beep._

It was only sound in the small, bland white room. A hospital room, I soon realized.

The first thing I did was glance around my small, empty room. It was for the most part cozy, that is, if you find rooms that practically _scream_ death and agony _cozy_. Gods, my life is so screwed up. Maybe I should have just told Snotlout and Tuffnut kill me when I had the chance. Anything- _anything_- would be better than living like this. For months the only thing I'll see will be this suffocating, isolated, and overall depressing prison, all because of a couple of stupid injuries. Why did I have to try and escape? How could I be so stupid? And now, I'm stuck here with a fractured wrist, a broken tailbone, and a cut- courtesy of Snotlout's Swiss army knife- in my thigh that required stitches.

The bedside table was littered with cards and notes, signed with names I had never heard before.

I reached over and plucked one from the vast selection. It was a simple card, with the picture of a blooming rose on the front.

_Dear Hiccup,_

_I heard about what happened, I can't believe someone could be so mean._

(Mean? Mean?! They touched me. They VIOLATED me. They RUINED ME!)

_I hope they get in trouble_

(I hope they burn in Hell, right next to all the murderers and pedophiles)

_and learn from what they did._

(Learn? Some people never change, and that's something I had to learn the hard way)

_I'll pray for you tonight. Kisses and hugs,_

_Katie _

_(P.S. I was your partner in math class- you know, 2nd period)_

I rolled my eyes.

I have math class for 5th hour, stupid. Gods, some people would do just about _anything_ for attention.

I dropped the card and felt strange satisfaction in watching as it floated to the blinding white tile floor.

That's what I think of your card, Katie. Whoever the heck you are.

I just about jumped out of my bed when I heard (and felt) a loud snore from my right and my right arm suddenly felt weighed down. My mind was suddenly racing with nightmarish recounts of the morning that changed my life forever.

_Take it like the little bitch you are._

_I bet you like it._

_Freak._

_Faggot._

_Girl._

_Weak._

There were tears streaming down my cheeks, but I was too far away in a land of horrors and endless darkness to feel them; to feel anything.

_"Let me go! Stop! Please, I'll do anything-" Laughter was their reply to his terrified pleas._

_"Shut up." __He recoiled from the body that was suddenly touching his, wrinkling his nose as he struggled against the bone-crushing grip of the _

_other boy's large, beefy hands. _

_The grip tightened. The body pressed harder against his, increasing the heat that scorched his skin at their touch. The invisible flames crept up his body at a slow, tantalizing pace, driven by his screams. _

_"STOP! Please! Plea- AHHH!"_

_He felt something sharp sink into his thigh and opened his mouth to scream, but no sound came out._

_They snapped him, finally cutting through the last few threads that had fought to stay strong for so long. They broke easily, and he felt his insides spilling out onto the freezing floor, his blood pooling around him._

_The tears kept falling._

_The endless incoherent words that his lips formed but he couldn't quite voice wouldn't stop._

_His heart slowly began to stop functioning, his lungs closing in on themselves._

_"I bet you like it. You take it like a girl, you little bitch. Weak. Just like a girl." One of his captors sneered, but he couldn't tell who. __His world was blurred behind a mask of tears, all of the small details blending together. _

_"Stop...please...I'm sorry...I'm sorry...I..." He couldn't speak, his lips were cold, shaking as if he were outside in the cold, not a foul smelling locker room. __But it didn't matter. He was cold inside, and the storm that raged on inside wouldn't stop._

_It never would._

_Never._

_Never._

_Nev-_

"-Hiccup! Wake up! You're okay... you're okay..."

I was panting, my eyes wide as I stared into the scared, yet still so beautiful bright blue eyes of my newest (and only) friend.

Well, I hoped we would be friends, anyway.

"You're okay. You're safe. I promise, and I'll be right by your side everyday until you get out of here."

I didn't respond, instead continuing to search Astrid's eyes for a sign that she was lying- she had to be. No one loved me. How could anyone love someone so broken? So _weak_ and _useless_?

Something.

Anything.

There was nothing.

"I promise, Hiccup. Now, I need you to promise me something. You need to stay strong, push away the nightmares and fight. Can you do that?"

I hesitated. No, no I can't do that, Astrid. Don't you see? They were right. I deserved it. I'm just a mistake, all wrong. All I do is drag everyone around me down. You should go, as far away from me as possible so I don't hurt you too. Can't you see, Astrid? I love you. I want you to be happy. Safe. But if you're with me, you can't be either of those things. I'm no good for you. You deserve someone who can protect you, someone who can make you happy. You deserve only the best, and that's something I'll never be.

But my body decided to go ahead and nod without my consent. Astrid managed to offer a weak, sad smile in reply. There were tears iim the corners of her eyes, a rare sight for the unbreakable Astrid Hofferson. The girl who stole my heart with only a blink of those pretty blue eyes so long ago. The girl who could have saved my life just by acting on her instincts. The girl who didn't care what anyone though of her, no matter how hard they tried to break down her walls.

"Good."

I inhaled deeply, trying to find my voice.

"How...how long was I out for?" My voice came out hoarse and raspy. I barely even recognized it as my own.

"4 days. I'm surprised you're up already."

I smiled, but it felt wrong. Out of place.

Just like me.

"What...what about..." I didn't need to finish my sentence for Astrid to know, she was already nodding.

"I don't know. But they ran out like little girls when I came in. I'm sorry, Hiccup, but I had to help you first. I promise you, the first thing I'll do when we get out of here is beat the shit out of them."

I smiled again, still weak but far truer than the last.

"I hope you do."

She chuckled, a sound that made my heart rise a small ways from the dark pit of my stomach before plummeting back down into the shadowy abyss.

"Thank you, Astrid. For...for being here."

Astrid felt her heart break when she heard that sentence, so simple and nonchalant, yet so powerful and pained.

"Oh, Hiccup..."

I braced myself for the tears and overused motivational quotes to follow.

I thought of the card, in all it's utterly _fake_ glory.

But they never came.

"Don't thank me. I should be thanking you. There's something... something I need to tell you. Something that's been bothering me lately."

My heart seemed to pause for a moment in hope, then continued on with it's awful, obnoxious beating.

"Do you remember in kindergarten when-"

"I love you."

Astrid's pink mouth fell open in a silent gape, a shocked and wary look in her icy blue eyes.

"W-What?" Astrid's voice rose an octave, cracking as she blushed, fumbling for words to voice her feelings and thoughts.

"I love you, Astrid."

She was silent, blue eyes avoiding mine, instead focusing on the floor. I felt my heart sink further into the depths of my stomach, caving in on itself as it truly and finally broke. She had been lying before. I was right, I should have trusted my instincts, to save myself from the pain. No one could ever love Hiccup the Useless.

"H-Hiccup... I... I..."

I bowed my, feeling shame and embarrassment as I looked down at the brace on my left wrist. Why did I have to jump to conclusions so quickly? Why couldn't I just shut up and listen for once?

"I love you too, Hiccup. And I'm sorry that it took me so long to realize."

I looked up in shock and met her beautiful blue eyes that reminded me so much of the blue sky as she intertwined our hands. I knew I was smiling at her like a total moron and making a fool of myself, but I didn't care. I was in love, and for once knew that someone loved me back. Truly and honestly.

But I needed to know something before I could just give my heart and self to her.

"Promise me something, Astrid."

She nodded. "Anything. Everything."

I paused for a moment. I had to know, but I also had to do this carefully. I couldn't let myself get hurt again.

"Promise me that you'll stand by my side until this is over. I need you to help me heal. To become at least a shadow of who I was."

Astrid gave me a sad, shaky smile, by teary eyes.

"Of course, but you're already so much better than who you were. You're so much stronger, wiser. I hate that it took for you to get hurt to happen, but I'm glad it did. I would never have realized that I love you if it hadn't. Hiccup... I love you. And don't you ever, _ever_ forget it. Come here."

Our lips met in a shaky, tear-filled kiss. It was gentle and slow, but brought with it raw emotion that sparked something in both of us.

Everything was finally taking a turn for the better, and I was glad to say that Astrid would be by my side through it all, no matter how dark and gloomy the road ahead looked.

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><p>Hello, Readers.<p>

A sequel to Nothing was requested, so here it is in all of it's tear-filled, fluffy glory. Did you like it? Hate it? Not quite sure? Let me know what you thought of it in the reviews.

Until next time,

_ShadowGirl996_


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